Written Answers

Thursday 13 April 2000

Scottish Executive

Airport Tax

Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the effect on the economy and on passenger numbers for airports such as Prestwick of the introduction of airport tax on a single leg journey and what discussions it has had on this issue with Her Majesty's Government and the European Commission.

Sarah Boyack: The main lowland airports in Scotland, including Prestwick, have sustained a strong increase in passenger numbers since the introduction of air passenger duty. This increase in passenger numbers has helped maintain and extend economic and employment opportunities directly and indirectly related to the activities of airports and airlines. The Scottish Executive, through its regular contacts with the UK Government, conveyed its support for the general principle of a lower rate of duty for low cost flights, as well as for changes which would secure exemptions for air services in the Highlands and Islands. The Executive has had no discussions with the European Commission on this reserved issue.

Autistic Children

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-5157 by Mr Sam Galbraith on 22 March 2000, how many children under the age of 18 have been assessed as suffering from Asperger’s syndrome or high functioning autism and what specialist provision is available in each local authority area.

Mr Sam Galbraith: This information is not held centrally. The majority of children with Asperger’s syndrome or high functioning autism will be in mainstream schools with additional support.

Barbed and Razor Wire

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will issue guidelines for planning authorities on the use of barbed and razor wire on the perimeters of buildings.

Sarah Boyack: No. Planning Advice Note 46: Planning for Crime Prevention , published in October 1994, gives advice to planning authorities on how crime prevention and community safety can be taken into account in planning. However, the advice does not address the specific legal issues surrounding the use of barbed and razor wire.

Community Care

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what allocation of development funding Argyll and Clyde Health Board has made (a) this year and (b) over the last four years in Argyll and Bute in order to facilitate the transfer of elderly and long stay patients in acute services to either appropriate residential or nursing home care or to return to care in the community, and which geographic areas received funding.

Iain Gray: Since 1996-97, Argyll and Clyde Health Board have allocated the following amounts to facilitate the transfer of elderly and long-stay Argyll and Bute patients from acute services (further information is available on request from Argyll and Clyde Health Board):

  



1995-96

  

1996-97

  

1997-98

  

1998-99

  

1999-2000

  



Amount transferred

  

£83,002

  

£85,362

  

£155,215

  

£159,617

  

£163,751

Community Care

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a training programme for all people employed in providing care for vulnerable adults, either through the Scottish Social Services Council, the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care, or otherwise.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Social Services Council will regulate all people who provide care for vulnerable adults. It will do this through the publication and promotion of codes of conduct and practice for the whole workforce. It will also register priority groups of staff, in the first instance professional social workers, all staff in residential childcare and heads of all residential homes. Registration will be tied to education, training and qualifications. The Scottish Executive will ensure that appropriate training is available for these priority groups. As a first step, the Executive has launched the Residential Child Care Initiative, which will ensure a fully qualified workforce in residential childcare.

Community Care

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends that the protection from abuse of vulnerable adults, whether cared for at home, in the voluntary sector, in hospitals or in residential nursing homes will be addressed by the Scottish Social Services Council or by the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care.

Iain Gray: The establishment of both the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care and the Scottish Social Services Council will strengthen the protection of vulnerable adults.

  The Commission will be the regulator of care services, whoever provides them. It will register all organisations that provide care against agreed criteria and will make regular independent inspections. The establishment of the council will enable us to better regulate staff who deliver care and ensure that we have a trained and competent workforce.

Community Care

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which social work departments, in each local authority, carry out mandatory police checks for care staff who work in both residential and home settings.

Iain Gray: This information is not available centrally. The arrangements for accessing police checks presently vary from sector to sector. Checks may be carried out as part of the registration process for independent care providers; and local authorities are able to carry out police checks on certain of their own care staff.

  Once the Scottish Social Services Council is set up following the White Paper Aiming for Excellence, priority groups of care staff will be registered on a consistent national basis. This process will involve police checks. We hope to introduce the necessary legislation to set up the council when parliamentary time permits.

Council Tax

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to redefine council tax bandings to take account of house price inflation since the council tax was introduced.

Mr Jack McConnell: We do not propose any changes at this time to the current council tax arrangements.

Council Tax

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many homes fell into each council tax property band in (a) the first year of its introduction and (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Mr Jack McConnell: The table below shows the number of dwellings in each council tax property band in (a) the first year of its introduction and (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

  


SCOTLAND 

  - COUNCIL TAX

  



Total 

  Number of Dwellings

  



Valuation 

  Band

  

Valuation 

  Band Ranges

  

October 

  19931


September
19992




Band A

  

Not exceeding 

  £27,000

  

592,236

  

600,808

  



Band B

  

Exceeding 

  £27,000, but not exceeding £35,000

  

562,540

  

576,854

  



Band C

  

Exceeding 

  £35,000, but not exceeding £45,000

  

337,836

  

353,302

  



Band D

  

Exceeding 

  £45,000, but not exceeding £58,000

  

237,343

  

266,645

  



Band E

  

Exceeding 

  £58,000, but not exceeding £80,000

  

235,361

  

264,479

  



Band F

  

Exceeding 

  £80,000, but not exceeding £106,000

  

115,134

  

128,134

  



Band G

  

Exceeding 

  £106,000, but not exceeding £212,000

  

79,729

  

85,820

  



Band H

  

Exceeding 

  £212,000

  

9,937

  

10,059

  



Total all 

  Bands

  




2,170,116

  

2,286,101

  



  Source: as reported by local authorities in statistical return Council Tax Base (CTAXBASE 1993 and CTAXBASE 1999).

  Notes:

  1. Total number of dwellings on the valuation list for authorities on 8 October 1993.

  2. Total number of dwellings on the valuation list for authorities on 6 September 1999.

Crown Estates

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of grants and subsidies which have been paid to members of the Royal Family in relation to their land and estates in Scotland in the last five years.

Rhona Brankin: Historic Scotland has not given any such grants to the Royal Family. They do, however, maintain the Palace of Holyrood House on behalf of the Crown and not on behalf of the Royal Family.

E-Commerce

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made in working with "key business influencers to increase boardroom recognition of the strategic challenges of e-commerce" and whether an action plan has been devised to tackle these challenges as identified as a commitment in the Cabinet Office report, e-commerce@its.best.uk .

Henry McLeish: The Scottish Executive will ensure that Scottish speakers and events will feature in the speaker platform strategy which is being put together by DTI.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average cost is of opening a Record of Needs.

Mr Sam Galbraith: This information is not held centrally.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many Records of Needs are currently in place in each local authority.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The information requested is given in the table below.

  Number of pupils with a Record of Needs, by Education Authority

  


Local Authority

  

Primary

  

Secondary

  

Special

  

Total

  

% 

  of School Roll

  



Scotland

  

3,869

  

4,589

  

6,934

  

15,392

  

1.95%

  



Aberdeen 

  City

  

169

  

150

  

476

  

795

  

2.61%

  



Aberdeenshire

  

168

  

191

  

292

  

651

  

1.76%

  



Angus

  

118

  

159

  




277

  

1.66%

  



Argyll & 

  Bute

  

51

  

64

  

45

  

160

  

1.16%

  



Clackmannanshire

  

25

  

71

  

86

  

182

  

2.10%

  



Dumfries 

  & Galloway

  

239

  

215

  

30

  

484

  

2.14%

  



Dundee City

  

191

  

206

  

188

  

585

  

2.62%

  



East Ayrshire

  

109

  

145

  

169

  

423

  

2.18%

  



East Dunbartonshire

  

28

  

28

  

96

  

152

  

0.78%

  



East Lothian

  

73

  

48

  




121

  

0.90%

  



East Renfrewshire

  

67

  

107

  

43

  

217

  

1.35%

  



Edinburgh, 

  City of

  

225

  

145

  

687

  

1,057

  

1.75%

  



Eilean Siar

  

63

  

45

  




108

  

2.44%

  



Falkirk

  

98

  

125

  

311

  

534

  

2.52%

  



Fife

  

165

  

211

  

216

  

592

  

1.10%

  



Glasgow 

  City

  

242

  

226

  

1,895

  

2,363

  

2.75%

  



Highland

  

309

  

404

  

156

  

869

  

2.56%

  



Inverclyde

  

128

  

140

  

138

  

406

  

2.89%

  



Midlothian

  

40

  

15

  

131

  

186

  

1.44%

  



Moray

  

133

  

150

  

13

  

296

  

2.06%

  



North Ayrshire

  

107

  

185

  

197

  

489

  

2.23%

  



North Lanarkshire

  

195

  

217

  

493

  

905

  

1.70%

  



Orkney Islands

  

12

  

23

  

8

  

43

  

1.34%

  



Perth & 

  Kinross

  

143

  

123

  

118

  

384

  

1.83%

  



Renfrewshire

  

169

  

291

  

354

  

814

  

2.93%

  



Scottish 

  Borders

  

126

  

129

  

5

  

260

  

1.67%

  



Shetland 

  Islands

  

52

  

26

  




78

  

1.99%

  



South Ayrshire

  

104

  

176

  

85

  

365

  

2.05%

  



South Lanarkshire

  

179

  

353

  

432

  

964

  

1.97%

  



Stirling

  

33

  

136

  

68

  

237

  

1.80%

  



West Dunbartonshire

  

28

  

20

  

92

  

140

  

0.88%

  



West Lothian

  

80

  

65

  

110

  

255

  

1.01%

  



  Source: Data collected by the School Census in September 1998.

  Note: The above figures show the education authorities that are educating the pupils. Some EAs pay others to educate pupils on their behalf - which limits how much comparison is possible between EAs.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many Records of Needs per 100,000 population are in place in each local authority.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The information requested is given in the table below.

  Number of pupils with a Record of Needs, by Education Authority

  


Local Authority

  

Records 

  of Needs

  

LA 

  Population

  

Rate 

  per 100,000

  



Scotland

  

15,392

  

5,120,000

  

300.63

  



Aberdeen 

  City

  

795

  

213,070

  

373.12

  



Aberdeenshire

  

651

  

226,260

  

287.72

  



Angus

  

277

  

110,070

  

251.66

  



Argyll & 

  Bute

  

160

  

89,980

  

177.82

  



Clackmannanshire

  

182

  

48,560

  

374.79

  



Dumfries 

  & Galloway

  

484

  

147,300

  

328.58

  



Dundee City

  

585

  

146,690

  

398.80

  



East Ayrshire

  

423

  

121,300

  

348.72

  



East Dunbartonshire

  

152

  

109,570

  

138.72

  



East Lothian

  

121

  

89,570

  

135.09

  



East Renfrewshire

  

217

  

87,980

  

246.65

  



Edinburgh, 

  City of

  

1,057

  

450,180

  

234.79

  



Eilean Siar

  

108

  

27,940

  

386.54

  



Falkirk

  

534

  

144,110

  

370.55

  



Fife

  

592

  

348,900

  

169.68

  



Glasgow 

  City

  

2,363

  

619,680

  

381.33

  



Highland

  

869

  

208,300

  

417.19

  



Inverclyde

  

406

  

85,400

  

475.41

  



Midlothian

  

186

  

80,860

  

230.03

  



Moray

  

296

  

85,870

  

344.71

  



North Ayrshire

  

489

  

139,660

  

350.14

  



North Lanarkshire

  

905

  

326,720

  

277.00

  



Orkney Islands

  

43

  

19,550

  

219.95

  



Perth & 

  Kinross

  

384

  

133,040

  

288.63

  



Renfrewshire

  

814

  

177,830

  

457.74

  



Scottish 

  Borders

  

260

  

106,300

  

244.59

  



Shetland 

  Islands

  

78

  

22,910

  

340.46

  



South Ayrshire

  

365

  

114,440

  

318.94

  



South Lanarkshire

  

964

  

306,860

  

314.15

  



Stirling

  

237

  

83,130

  

285.10

  



West Dunbartonshire

  

140

  

94,880

  

147.55

  



West Lothian

  

255

  

153,090

  

166.57

  



  Source: Records of Needs data collected by the School Census in September 1998. Population data is 1998 mid-year population estimates for Scotland, supplied by GRO(S).

  Note: the figures show the LAs that are educating the pupils. Some LAs pay others to educate pupils on their behalf which limits how much comparison is possible between LAs.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to review the operation of Records of Needs to ensure similarity of provision across Scotland.

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any improvements are needed in the length of time taken to set up Records of Needs across Scotland and what plans it has to bring about such improvements.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The new national Special Educational Needs Advisory Forum, chaired by Peter Peacock, Deputy Minister for Children and Education, will review all aspects of the Record of Needs process.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there are for educational psychologists in each local authority.

Mr Sam Galbraith: This information is not held centrally. The Executive will soon meet with the Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists (ASPEP) to review the supply and demand for educational psychologists to ensure that the appropriate balance is achieved.

Education

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many students are expected to graduate as educational psychologists in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003.

Henry McLeish: The information requested is not available. It is not possible to provide analysis at this level of disaggregation. Educational Psychology is a specialism that students might take up in their second, or more likely, their third year of study.

Education

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what role sport is playing in activities aimed at raising the educational achievement of boys.

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to improve the educational attainment of boys.

Peter Peacock: We want to raise the educational attainment of all of our young people. We recently commissioned a research project which aims to identify factors which influence the relative attainment of boys and girls and to provide advice on how good performance by both genders can be achieved. This will report at the end of this year.

  We believe that sport can and should be used to contribute to the aim of raising educational attainment levels of both boys and girls. Some schools are using sporting activity within supported study and we encourage education authorities to consider further developments in this area.

European Funding

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what grants of European Union funding have been received by Developing North Ayrshire in the current financial year.

Mr Jack McConnell: Developing North Ayrshire received £418,336 of European grant in the financial year 1999-2000.

Freight

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it expects applications for assistance from the Freight Facilities Grant Scheme to exceed the £18.3 million available over the current three year period; whether it intends to increase the money allocated to this scheme, and how it intends to prioritise grant allocations to ensure best value.

Sarah Boyack: It is up to the private sector to come forward with applications under the Freight Facilities Grant Scheme. Awards under the scheme are managed within the funds available.

Fuel

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has made to Her Majesty's Government regarding the possible imposition of a tax on aviation fuel and any effects such a tax might have on the accessibility of the Highlands and Islands and Scotland as a whole.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive has made no representations to the UK Government on the possible imposition of a tax on aviation fuel. There are no proposals to introduce aviation fuel tax at UK or EU level.

Health

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for a hernia operation in the Fife Health Board area.

Susan Deacon: The latest information available for the median waiting time for Fife residents admitted routinely from the waiting list for a hernia operation during the 12 month period to 31 December 1999 was 112 days.

Health

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-3875 by Susan Deacon on 24 February 2000, how the number of intensive therapy unit beds compares to that in England and Wales.

Susan Deacon: A comparison of the type requested is not available. I understand that information on numbers of ITU beds in England and Wales is unlikely to be directly comparable, since definitions and methods of data collection differ in the three countries.

Health

Bill Aitken (Glasgow) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current annual cost is to the NHS in Scotland of carrying out abortions.

Susan Deacon: The costs of abortions are not separately recorded but included in the overall costs of gynaecological surgery and medical day cases. It would require a costly and time-consuming special exercise to isolate abortion costs.

Health Promotion

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made with the health demonstration projects "Starting Well", "Healthy Respect", "The Heart of Scotland" and "The Cancer Challenge".

Susan Deacon: The intention to establish these four demonstration projects, with the aim of enabling local successes to inform national change in key areas, was set out in the White Paper, Towards a Healthier Scotland . Following due consideration of a large number of proposals from groups across Scotland, appropriate lead organisations for each of the projects have now been identified. It is proposed that "Starting Well" should be delivered by Glasgow Healthy City Partnership, "Healthy Respect" should be delivered by Lothian Health, "The Heart of Scotland" should be delivered by Paisley Local Health Care Co-operative and "The Cancer Challenge" should be delivered jointly by Fife, Tayside and Grampian Health Boards. These organisations, in consultation with their partner organisations and the Executive, are currently undertaking preparatory work to enable the projects to come into operation over the next few months.

Homelessness

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people are currently registered by each local authority as homeless persons.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Local authorities assess whether applicants under the homeless persons legislation are homeless or potentially homeless but do not register homeless people.

  The Homelessness Task Force will consider the issue of focusing the assessment on homeless people rather than applications in the future.

  The Scottish Executive publishes quarterly the numbers of applications which are made to each local authority by households under the homeless persons legislation.

  The most recent information (up to the quarter ended September 1999) was published in March in table 16 of the Statistical Bulletin: Housing Series HSG/2000/2.

  Not all applicant households are assessed as being homeless or potentially homeless. Table 17 of the Bulletin HSG/2000/2 presents the total number of applications in recent years which were assessed by local authorities as being homeless or potentially homeless. A local authority breakdown of this number for 1997-98 was presented in the Scottish Executive Statistical Bulletin: Housing Series HSG/1999/3.

  Copies of these bulletins are available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Housing

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent on private sector housing grants in each of the last four years for which figures are available, broken down by local authority.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The information requested is shown in the tables below.

  Gross Capital Payments1 Private Sector Housing Grants (£000)

  





1995-1996

  



Authority

  

Statutory Grants 

  Gross capital payments

  

Discretionary Grants 

  Gross capital payments

  

Total capital payments

  



Scotland

  

44,846

  

56,410

  

101,256

  



Berwickshire

  

0

  

545

  

545

  



Ettrick & Lauderdale

  

0

  

811

  

811

  



Tweeddale

  

0

  

548

  

548

  



Roxburgh

  

0

  

820

  

820

  



Clackmannan

  

384

  

6

  

390

  



Falkirk

  

0

  

766

  

766

  



Stirling

  

53

  

472

  

525

  



Annandale & Eskdale

  

473

  

0

  

473

  



Nithsdale

  

430

  

304

  

734

  



Stewartry

  

11

  

129

  

140

  



Wigtown

  

63

  

543

  

606

  



Dunfermline

  

166

  

617

  

783

  



Kirkcaldy

  

228

  

469

  

697

  



North East Fife

  

0

  

1,210

  

1,210

  



Aberdeen

  

2,325

  

783

  

3,108

  



Banff & Buchan

  

706

  

236

  

942

  



Gordon

  

1

  

422

  

423

  



Kincardine & Deeside

  

0

  

520

  

520

  



Moray

  

2

  

907

  

909

  



Badenoch & Strathspey

  

0

  

250

  

250

  



Caithness

  

0

  

709

  

709

  



Inverness

  

0

  

797

  

797

  



Lochaber

  

785

  

0

  

785

  



Nairn

  

0

  

155

  

155

  



Ross&Cromarty

  

568

  

2,168

  

2,736

  



Skye & Lochalsh

  

0

  

1,008

  

1,008

  



Sutherland

  

1

  

693

  

694

  



East Lothian

  

544

  

433

  

977

  



Edinburgh

  

7,180

  

12,763

  

19,943

  



Midlothian

  

615

  

0

  

615

  



West Lothian

  

0

  

691

  

691

  



Argyll & Bute

  

4,572

  

0

  

4,572

  



Bearsden & Milngavie

  

0

  

174

  

174

  



Clydebank

  

7

  

321

  

328

  



Clydesdale

  

682

  

76

  

758

  



Cumbernauld & Kilsyth

  

0

  

581

  

581

  



Cumnock & Doon Valley

  

0

  

251

  

251

  



Cunninghame

  

2,786

  

309

  

3,095

  



Dumbarton

  

712

  

172

  

884

  



East Kilbride

  

0

  

409

  

409

  



Eastwood

  

0

  

201

  

201

  



Glasgow

  

8,273

  

10,677

  

18,950

  



Hamilton

  

1,619

  

0

  

1,619

  



Inverclyde

  

8

  

4,290

  

4,298

  



Kilmarnock & Loudoun

  

405

  

0

  

405

  



Kyle & Carrick

  

820

  

0

  

820

  



Monklands

  

433

  

442

  

875

  



Motherwell

  

386

  

539

  

925

  



Renfrew

  

2,811

  

603

  

3,414

  



Strathkelvin

  

774

  

0

  

774

  



Angus

  

0

  

854

  

854

  



Dundee

  

2,861

  

1,430

  

4,291

  



Perth & Kinross

  

51

  

1,825

  

1,876

  



Orkney

  

0

  

1,268

  

1,268

  



Shetland

  

0

  

1,204

  

1,204

  



Western Isles

  

3,111

  

1,009

  

4,120

  



  Source: Information supplied by local authorities on the statistical returns Housing: capital payments and capital receipts (HCM-5) 1995-96.

  Notes:

  

Includes payments 

  both funded and not funded from revenue.



  Gross Capital Payments1 Private Sector Housing Grants 1996-99

  





1996-97

  

1997-98

  



Authority

  

Statutory 

  Grants Total capital payments

  

Discretionary 

  Grants Total capital payments

  

Total 

  capital payments

  

Statutory 

  Grants Total capital payments

  

Discretionary 

  Grants Total capital payments

  

Total 

  capital payments

  



Scotland

  

25,726

  

45,205

  

70,931

  

19,420

  

29,501

  

48,921

  



Aberdeen 

  City

  

0

  

0

  

0

  

1,369

  

1,892

  

3,261

  



Aberdeenshire

  

963

  

23

  

986

  

279

  

118

  

397

  



Angus

  

983

  

0

  

983

  

0

  

853

  

853

  



Argyll & 

  Bute

  

3,003

  

96

  

3,099

  

0

  

2,553

  

2,553

  



Clackmannanshire

  

2

  

238

  

240

  

30

  

393

  

423

  



Dumfries 

  & Galloway

  

52

  

1,118

  

1,170

  

409

  

619

  

1,028

  



Dundee City

  

1,865

  

933

  

2,798

  

1,371

  

686

  

2,057

  



East Ayrshire

  

510

  

0

  

510

  

441

  

0

  

441

  



East Dunbartonshire

  

547

  

0

  

547

  

155

  

154

  

309

  



East Lothian

  

1,250

  

0

  

1,250

  

467

  

386

  

853

  



East Renfrewshire

  

0

  

357

  

357

  

182

  

0

  

182

  



Edinburgh, 

  City of

  

1,498

  

15,997

  

17,495

  

5,745

  

0

  

5,745

  



Eilean Siar

  

2,601

  

978

  

3,579

  

1,888

  

861

  

2,749

  



Falkirk

  

0

  

470

  

470

  

7

  

382

  

389

  



Fife

  

204

  

2,455

  

2,659

  

3

  

396

  

399

  



Glasgow 

  City

  

6,512

  

1,533

  

8,045

  

2,256

  

3,984

  

6,240

  



Highland

  

0

  

5,814

  

5,814

  

0

  

3,888

  

3,888

  



Inverclyde

  

5

  

3,231

  

3,236

  

0

  

1,318

  

1,318

  



Midlothian

  

0

  

343

  

343

  

0

  

39

  

39

  



Moray

  

1

  

646

  

647

  

1

  

212

  

213

  



North Ayrshire

  

1,738

  

193

  

1,931

  

2,048

  

227

  

2,275

  



North Lanarkshire

  

1,118

  

992

  

2,110

  

455

  

1,180

  

1,635

  



Orkney Islands

  

0

  

1,324

  

1,324

  

0

  

876

  

876

  



Perth & 

  Kinross

  

84

  

878

  

962

  

149

  

875

  

1,024

  



Renfrewshire

  

2,344

  

569

  

2,913

  

1,323

  

635

  

1,958

  



Scottish 

  Borders

  

120

  

1,610

  

1,730

  

64

  

1,017

  

1,081

  



Shetland 

  Islands

  

0

  

516

  

516

  

0

  

261

  

261

  



South Ayrshire

  

0

  

876

  

876

  

80

  

768

  

848

  



South Lanarkshire

  

0

  

2,330

  

2,330

  

0

  

4,097

  

4,097

  



Stirling

  

312

  

468

  

780

  

182

  

387

  

569

  



West Dunbartonshire

  

14

  

572

  

586

  

21

  

444

  

465

  



West Lothian

  

0

  

645

  

645

  

495

  

0

  

495

  



  


 



1998-99

  



Authority

  

Statutory Grants 

  Total capital payments

  

Discretionary Grants 

  Total capital payments

  

Total capital payments

  



Scotland

  

13,912

  

24,571

  

38,483

  



Aberdeen City

  

1,475

  

1,012

  

2,487

  



Aberdeenshire

  

239

  

0

  

239

  



Angus

  

365

  

18

  

383

  



Argyll & Bute

  

0

  

1,812

  

1,812

  



Clackmannanshire

  

6

  

306

  

312

  



Dumfries & Galloway

  

257

  

140

  

397

  



Dundee City

  

1,343

  

896

  

2,239

  



East Ayrshire

  

463

  

0

  

463

  



East Dunbartonshire

  

37

  

170

  

207

  



East Lothian

  

48

  

315

  

363

  



East Renfrewshire

  

44

  

142

  

186

  



Edinburgh, City of

  

833

  

2,124

  

2,957

  



Eilean Siar

  

1,665

  

712

  

2,377

  



Falkirk

  

417

  

0

  

417

  



Fife

  

41

  

82

  

123

  



Glasgow City

  

3,247

  

3,856

  

7,103

  



Highland

  

0

  

2,372

  

2,372

  



Inverclyde

  

4

  

1,384

  

1,388

  



Midlothian

  

152

  

0

  

152

  



Moray

  

0

  

695

  

695

  



North Ayrshire

  

1,613

  

179

  

1,792

  



North Lanarkshire

  

100

  

1,204

  

1,304

  



Orkney Islands

  

0

  

495

  

495

  



Perth & Kinross

  

171

  

650

  

821

  



Renfrewshire

  

1,183

  

405

  

1,588

  



Scottish Borders

  

31

  

1,301

  

1,332

  



Shetland Islands

  

0

  

0

  

0

  



South Ayrshire

  

50

  

362

  

412

  



South Lanarkshire

  

0

  

3,150

  

3,150

  



Stirling

  

2

  

374

  

376

  



West Dunbartonshire

  

126

  

0

  

126

  



West Lothian

  

0

  

415

  

415

  



  Source: Information supplied by local authorities on the statistical returns Capital payments and their financing (CPR 5) 1996-97,1997-98,1998-99.

  Notes:

  1. Includes payments both funded and not funded from revenue.

Inverness College

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the financial accounts for Inverness College for the year ended March 1999 were due to have been published, and when they will be published.

Henry McLeish: The financial accounts of Inverness College for the year ended March 1999 should have been lodged with Companies House by 31 January 2000. I understand that the accounts are still the subject of discussion between the College and its auditors.

Inverness College

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what sale price was achieved for Dalneigh Halls of Residence at Inverness College and whether a professional valuation of the estimated sale price of this heritable property was obtained and, if so, whether it will place a copy of the survey in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Henry McLeish: Dalneigh Halls of Residence were disposed of by Inverness College in 1998 on the open market, for £275,000. The college had first obtained a professional valuation of the property. The Scottish Executive does not have a copy of the valuation report.

Justice

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive to specify the average elapsed time, by sheriff court, between the recording plea of "Not Guilty" and the final disposal of the case, in summary cases at (a) October 1999, (b) December 1999, (c) January 2000 and (d) February 2000.

Mr Jim Wallace: Information in the form requested is not routinely available. However, arrangements have been made to extract details of the elapsed time in respect of certain summary cases for October 1999 and February 2000. Information for December 1999 and January 2000 would be distorted by the Christmas and New Year holiday periods.

  The table which follows illustrates the average period in weeks between an initial plea of "Not Guilty" and conclusion of proceedings. For this purpose concluded cases will include those deserted, findings of not guilty and not proven. However, in order to minimise unnecessary distortion of the duration periods, the following categories of cases have been excluded: namely cases involving breach proceedings, warrants to apprehend, restoration of driving licences and deferred sentences.

  The period can appear to fluctuate erratically in some courts, particularly the smaller courts where the concluded sample is relatively small, because of the nature of the individual cases being dealt with at the time. Any one case experiencing several adjournments will distort the average period disproportionately.

  



Oct 

  99

  

Feb 

  2000

  


Oct 

  99

  

Feb 

  2000

  



Aberdeen

  

11

  

10

  

Inverness

  

16

  

12

  



Airdrie

  

17

  

18

  

Jedburgh

  

11

  

18

  



Alloa

  

17

  

19

  

Kilmarnock

  

8

  

8

  



Arbroath

  

12

  

13

  

Kirkcaldy

  

15

  

17

  



Ayr

  

17

  

16

  

Kirkcudbright

  

10

  

18

  



Banff

  

18

  

15

  

Kirkwall

  

9

  

7

  



Campbeltown

  

13

  

13

  

Lanark

  

12

  

12

  



Cupar

  

12

  

20

  

Lerwick

  

13

  

14

  



Dingwall

  

8

  

12

  

Linlithgow

  

19

  

22

  



Dornoch

  

23

  

12

  

Lochmaddy

  

16

  

12

  



Dumbarton

  

19

  

15

  

Oban

  

12

  

10

  



Dumfries

  

16

  

13

  

Paisley

  

11

  

13

  



Dundee

  

18

  

21

  

Peebles

  

12

  

10

  



Dunfermline

  

13

  

16

  

Perth

  

20

  

22

  



Dunoon

  

25

  

10

  

Peterhead

  

17

  

13

  



Duns

  

11

  

10

  

Portree

  

n/a

  

4

  



Edinburgh

  

18

  

17

  

Rothesay

  

8

  

2

  



Elgin

  

13

  

21

  

Selkirk

  

11

  

17

  



Falkirk

  

14

  

17

  

Stirling

  

14

  

22

  



Forfar

  

12

  

14

  

Stonehaven

  

13

  

14

  



Fort William

  

14

  

12

  

Stornoway

  

9

  

12

  



Glasgow

  

13

  

13

  

Stranraer

  

10

  

11

  



Greenock

  

11

  

11

  

Tain

  

19

  

16

  



Haddington

  

13

  

14

  

Wick

  

7

  

11

  



Hamilton

  

15

  

17

  

Scottish 

  Average

  

14

  

15

Landfill Tax

Euan Robson (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice and/or extra resources it will provide to local authorities if materials for engineering purposes or engineering works at landfill sites are deemed to be waste, and hence subject to landfill tax, by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise.

Sarah Boyack: The rules for application of the tax are set out in reserved legislation and guidance is issued by HM Customs and Excise. There has been no change with respect to the classification of materials used for site engineering purposes.

Lip Reading

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide funding for professionals, such as social workers and nurses, to obtain a recognised qualification in lip reading.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive provides funding to local authorities through the Training Specific Grant for Social Work Training. Local authorities determine their own training needs and if they so decide they may spend these funds on training social workers in lip reading.

  Likewise it is for NHS Trusts to satisfy themselves that their employees, including nurses, have the appropriate skills to undertake the duties assigned to them. Where appropriate, this may include funding for training in lip reading

Ministerial Correspondence

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1235 by Donald Dewar on 15 December 1999, whether it will provide a detailed breakdown by department, including the First Minister’s Office, of its performance in relation to its targets for replying to correspondence from MPs or MSPs for the period 1 November 1999 to 31 January 2000.

Donald Dewar: The information requested in relation to the target of 17 working days for the period 1 November to 31 December 1999 is detailed in the table below.

  


Department 

  

  

Number 

  of replies issued

  

% 

  of replies to MPs and MSPs issued within 17 working day target

  



TOTAL 

  

1,243

  

36%

  



Crown Office

  

40

  

68%

  



Development

  

422

  

35%

  



Education

  

122

  

45%

  



Enterprise 

  & Lifelong Learning

  

115

  

47%

  



Health

  

162

  

10.5%

  



Justice

  

150*

  

50%*

  



Rural Affairs

  

212

  

32.1%

  



Others

  

60

  

52%

  



  Notes: The figures for the Justice Department are estimated.

  These performances against target figures reflect the increased number of letters received by Ministers. But we are taking steps to introduce a new ministerial correspondence system to deliver faster replies. I expect the system to be fully operational shortly.

Ministerial Correspondence

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1235 by Donald Dewar on 15 December 1999 and question S1W-4192 lodged on 4 February 2000, when it will give a substantive answer to question S1W-4192 regarding its performance in relation to targets for replying to correspondence from MPs or MSPs.

Donald Dewar: Question S1W-4192 was answered today.

National Parks

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what effects national parks are expected to have on social and economic conditions of residents within park boundaries and whether any measures are in place to ensure that any effects of such designation are not detrimental to the social and economic conditions of the residents.

Sarah Boyack: One of the aims of National Parks will be to promote economic and social development. They will be expected to integrate rural development with the proper protection of the natural and cultural heritage. Contributions by local residents to the National Park Authority, its committees, advisory groups, and preparation of the National Park Plan will all help to ensure the interests of local communities are recognised. National Park Authorities will be required to publish an annual report.

Nursery Education

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the ratio is of pupils to teachers in nursery schools in public and private provision and what the explanation is for any variation between the two.

Peter Peacock: Nursery education in both the public and independent sector is delivered by a mix of staff which includes teachers, nursery nurses and other staff. The ratio of staff to pupils is 1:9 in local authorities and 1:5 in others. According to the February 1999 Pre-school Census, the overall ratio of teachers to pupils in local authority nursery schools and classes is 1:29. In publicly funded "partner" centres (in the private, voluntary and independent sectors) it is 1:43.

  It is our intention to harmonise staffing requirements in both sectors following consultation last year on regulation of early education and childcare. We will announce our conclusions shortly.

Objective 2 Funding

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it can confirm, following the agreement by the European Commission of the Objective 2 map, how much European Structural Fund support will be available within the Objective 2 programmes for the East, South and West of Scotland between 2000 and 2006.

Mr Jack McConnell: I can announce the amount of European Structural Funding available per head of population both in respect of the full eligible areas and in the transitional areas. The increase above the indicative amounts overall, announced previously, is small but the increase for those areas in transition is much more substantial, amounting to over 40%. The true value of the three Objective 2 Programmes will now be around €800 million, with the transitional element of the programmes increasing to nearly €200 million. A table giving full details of the allocations to each Programme is attached.

  In line with the EU regulations, from these gross allocations 4% of the total value will initially be held back for the performance reserve. At the mid-term (2003-04), the Commission will allocate this reserve to Objective 2 Programmes in Scotland based on the monitored effectiveness of each programme in relation to specific targets.

  Estimate of Objective 2 Funds Available 2000-06

  



Full 

  Eligibility Population

  

Transition 

  Population

  

Programme 

  Value EURO

  

Less 

  4% Performance Reserve

  

Full 

  Eligibility EURO (2000-2006)

  

Transition 

  EURO (2000-2006)

  

Programme 

  Value STERLING €1 = £0.6047

  

Less 

  4% PerformanceReserve

  



East of 

  Scotland

  

563,000

  

688,000

  

250,540,000

  

240,518,400

  

168,460,000

  

82,080,000

  

151,501,538

  

145,441,476

  



South of 

  Scotland

  

238,000

  

16,000

  

73,130,000

  

70,204,800

  

71,220,000

  

1,910,000

  

44,221,711

  

42,452,843

  



Western 

  Scotland

  

1,228,000

  

971,000

  

483,290,000

  

463,958,400

  

367,450,000

  

115,840,000

  

292,245,463

  

280,555,644

  



TOTALS

  

2,029,000

  

1,675,000

  

806,960,000

  

774,681,600

  

607,130,000

  

199,830,000

  

487,968,712

  

468,449,963

  



  Notes:

  Figures based on populations of eligible and transitional wards as at 1996.

  Full eligibility figure is agreed at €42.74 per capita.

  Transitional figure is agreed at €19.8 per capita.

  Exchange rate at February 2000 is €1 = £0.6047 £1 = €1.6537.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has not yet given substantive answers to questions S1W-1518, S1W-2429, S1W-2433, S1W-2603, S1W-3258, S1W-3259, S1W-3383, S1W-3384, S1W-3804 and S1W-3807, all lodged between 13 September 1999 and 18 January 2000 and when it will answer these questions.

Mr Tom McCabe: The background to the delay in answering these PQ’s has been investigated and answers will be issued as soon as possible.

Parliamentary Questions

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide a substantive answer to question S1W-2360 lodged on 4 November 1999.

Rhona Brankin: Question S1W-2360 was answered today.

Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Bill

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will instruct the Macaulay Land Use Institute to conduct a thorough investigation into the social, economic and environmental significance of the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Bill for remote communities and specifically for Stratherrick and Lochaber.

Ross Finnie: No. The lead Committee considering the details of the proposed Bill can commission any further research it feels is necessary.

Public Transport

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what financial input it is making to the bus corridor proposals in Glasgow and what time limits apply to the spending of any such money.

Sarah Boyack: Glasgow City Council, in partnership with West Dunbartonshire Council were awarded a total of £6.05 million from the first round of the Public Transport Fund towards the development of bus priority measures along the Baillieston to Faifley corridor. The allocation of this additional capital consent is spread over three financial years (1999-2000 to 2001-02). The City Council were also awarded a further £6.6 million, spread over three financial years (2000-01 to 2002-03), from the second round of the fund to assist them with the development of a further two quality bus corridors in the city.

Rail Network

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has for park and ride termini at railway stations on any of the lines between Glasgow and Edinburgh and to provide details of costings.

Sarah Boyack: Park and ride interchanges are local transport matters and as such are for the local authorities in conjunction with Railtrack to develop. The Scottish Executive has committed £90 million under the Public Transport Fund to assist with projects such as these. £350,000 was awarded to Falkirk Council from the fund for the council’s Railway Station Access Project, which includes the provision of car parking at Falkirk High and Polmont railway stations. This is an issue included in the guidance provided by the Scottish Executive to guide the production of Local Transport Strategies.

Rail Network

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive to detail any costing available relating to the creation of a rail link between Bathgate and Airdrie.

Sarah Boyack: I understand that a recent study undertaken by the Railway Development Society on behalf of West Lothian Council estimated the cost of reinstating the Airdrie to Bathgate line at £19 million.

Rape

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many cases of reported rapes, in each of the last five years, did not proceed to prosecution or had the prosecution abandoned because the complainant was unwilling or too distressed to proceed.

Colin Boyd QC: There are no figures for the numbers of rapes recorded by the police which resulted in reports to Procurators Fiscal for consideration of proceedings. Of the reported cases, we do not have figures about cases where criminal proceedings are not instituted by the Crown because the complainer is too unwilling or distressed to proceed, or where a trial cannot proceed or is discontinued for those reasons.

Raptors

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the report by the Hawk and Owl Trust on raptors is expected to be published.

Sarah Boyack: The report was published on 27 March 2000.

Road Safety

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received representations from the Duror and Kentallen Community Council with regard to safety measures on the A828, and what action it will take.

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the Road Accident Reduction Programme looking at road safety and traffic management at Duror and Kentallen on the A828 will take into account the measures which Duror and Kentallen Community Council has already proposed.

Sarah Boyack: Yes. A Route Accident Reduction Plan (RARP) study has been completed for this route and addresses some of the issues raised by the Duror and Kentallen Community Council. The RARP has identified measures that would benefit the whole of the route including the Achindarroch and Cuil Bay junctions. The RARP has also recommended that further, more detailed investigations are required at particular locations. The remaining issues raised by the community council are currently being assessed. It is anticipated that the RARP safety measures already identified will be installed within this financial year.

Roads

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, following the latest deaths at the Ellon junction on the A90, it will now take immediate action to improve road safety on the A90 between Aberdeen and Peterhead.

Sarah Boyack: I can confirm that the Scottish Executive is considering a road safety improvement programme for the A90 trunk between Aberdeen and Peterhead and that this will be taken forward subject to competing priorities on the trunk road network and subject to available funding.

Roads

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment was made of whether the proposals for the A701 represent value for money and whether it will provide details of any such assessment considered by it whilst deciding whether to call in the proposals.

Sarah Boyack: Such an assessment was not made available to the Scottish Executive and was not a material consideration in making the decision on the Notice of Intention to Develop.

Roads

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considered the outline business case for the A701 whilst considering whether Midlothian Council’s proposals should be called in for a public inquiry.

Sarah Boyack: An outline business case was not available to the Scottish Executive and was not a material consideration in making the decision on the Notice of Intention to Develop.

Roads

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it had in its possession any details of the financial case, the cost benefit analysis or a multi-modal study whilst considering whether to call in Midlothian Council’s proposals for the A701.

Sarah Boyack: Such details were not made available to the Scottish Executive and were not material considerations in making the decision on the Notice of Intention to Develop.

Scottish University for Industry

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a decision has been taken on the location of the Scottish University for Industry’s headquarters.

Henry McLeish: I am glad to announce today that the new Europa Building, in Glasgow’s Argyle Street, has been chosen as the location for the Scottish UfI’s headquarters. The company’s staff of around 25 are expected to locate there at the end of May. The Europa Building is an excellent site, situated in the centre of Glasgow, with easy access to transport links and to many of the key partners who will be involved in making the Scottish UfI a success.

Seal Population

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to tackle the rising number of seals in Scottish waters.

Mr John Home Robertson: This matter is covered by the Conservation of Seals Act 1970. This allows for controls to be exercised by anyone possessing an appropriately licensed firearm except during the close seasons when special provisions apply. This approach recognises that control of seal predation on fisheries is best handled at the local level.

  I am fully aware of the concerns expressed about rising seal numbers and their effect on fisheries. Advice on seal populations is provided by the Natural Environment Research Council on an annual basis and a copy of their most recent report has been placed in SPICe.

Sensory Impaired People

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the current ratio is of qualified rehabilitation workers to sensory impaired clients, what targets it has for improving this ratio and what progress has been made in improving this ratio since May 1999.

Mr Sam Galbraith: Information regarding the current ratio of qualified rehabilitation workers to people with a sensory impairment is not held centrally. It is for local authorities to assess how many people with a visual impairment in their area require the services of rehabilitation workers and arrange for their staff to be trained accordingly. Guide Dogs for the Blind Association train rehabilitation workers. They have been supported in their work by funding from section 9 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 for a number of years. In 1999-2000 they received £20,600. In 1999-2000, a grant of £150,000 from section 9 was awarded to six voluntary organisations to take forward the recommendations in the Social Work Services Inspectorate report Sensing Progress .

Sexual Abuse

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what services exist, in the voluntary and statutory sectors, to assess the needs of men who have been the victim of sexual abuse in childhood or sexual assaults as adults, and to provide them with ongoing support, counselling and advocacy, and whether it is satisfied that this service provision is adequate.

Mr Jim Wallace: There is no central record of services to assess the needs of men who have been the victim of sexual abuse in childhood or sexual assaults as adults.

  However the Framework for Mental Health Services in Scotland which was published in 1997, assists staff in health, social work and housing agencies to develop a joint approach to the planning, commissioning and provision of integrated mental health services. Thus, health boards and NHS Trusts are expected to develop services for the treatment and rehabilitation of psychological disorders based on the assessment of needs. This would include psychological and post-traumatic therapies for a wide range of emotional, psychological and psychiatric presentations, for example, as a result of trauma, assault, and childhood sexual or physical abuse. This framework sets the context for service provision for such victims which is then a matter for the local health board to determine, with its service partners, and to specify in its Health Improvement Programme.

  Whilst there are considerable difficulties in ascertaining the prevalence of such abuse, the Scottish Executive funds Victim Support Scotland to provide practical and emotional support to all victims of crime. Specially trained volunteers provide specific help to victims of rape and sexual assault, irrespective of gender.

Sport

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it is having on the role of sport in social inclusion strategies.

Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive’s Social Inclusion Strategy identifies the important role sport can play in promoting social inclusion. In collaboration with  sportscotland we have commissioned research that focuses on the role of sport in regenerating urban deprived areas. This research will provide examples of best practice relating to the promotion of social inclusion through sport. The report will be published in the near future.

  A second research project on the sports participation of people with disabilities and people from ethnic minority communities is focussing on the barriers that prevent people from these groups from participating in sport and how they can be overcome.

  At my request, sportscotland is organising a conference on sport and social inclusion to be held later this year.

Strategic Railway Authority

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with Ministers or officials of the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions concerning Scottish representation on the Strategic Railway Authority.

Sarah Boyack: The Deputy Prime Minister gave a commitment in October 1998 that Scottish interests would be represented on the Strategic Rail Authority. The Scottish Executive has been in close contact with the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions concerning Scottish representation on the British Railways Board (whose members will become members of SRA when it is formally established). The Minister for Transport, Lord Macdonald, announced today that he has appointed seven new members to the board, including Mr Willie Gallagher, formerly Director of Customer Services for Scottish Power.

Student Finance

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make a statement about the Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) Regulations 2000.

Henry McLeish: The Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) Regulations 2000 govern the new arrangements for the collection of repayments of income-contingent loans through the tax system. They were subject to the affirmative resolution procedure at Westminster and confer duties and functions on the Inland Revenue on a UK-wide basis. They came into force on 1 April 2000. Copies of the regulations are being placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

  A set of regulations which cover matters not related to the conferral of functions on the Inland Revenue will be laid before the Parliament shortly.

Tourism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is aware of the Caithness and Sutherland Trout Angling Group Brown Trout Angling Survey 1999; whether it will include the development of special fishing holiday deals and packages as an additional niche market in its tourism strategy, and whether it will consult with all relevant bodies and interest groups in relation to this matter.

Henry McLeish: Angling is an important aspect of the tourism sector and all ATBs should be aware of the opportunities. The Highlands of Scotland Tourist Board are partners in the Caithness and Sutherland Angling Group.

Tourism

Nick Johnston (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-5223 by Henry McLeish on 23 March 2000, whether visitors to Scotland will be able to reserve accommodation using the Ossian Project by 1 June 2000.

Henry McLeish: Visitors to Scotland will be able to reserve accommodation using e-commerce from 30 June 2000.

Tourism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will discuss with the Scottish Tourist Board its appointment of a Parliamentary Liaison Officer and whether the salary costs of the post would be better spent on marketing activities.

Henry McLeish: No. This is an operational matter for the Scottish Tourist Board.

Traffic

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has issued or plans to issue any guidance to local authorities about their approach to traffic restriction proposals affecting suburban areas.

Sarah Boyack: The Executive has recently issued guidance to local authorities on the preparation of Local Transport Strategies. This provides advice on traffic management and demand restraint issues. I shall arrange for a copy of the guidance to be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Trans-European Networks

Euan Robson (Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has made representations to the European Commission regarding the inclusion of Scottish projects on Trans-European (TEN) maps and what the outcome was of any such representations.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive is contributing to the current Commission review of Trans-European Networks through the Department for Environment, Transport and the Regions, which leads for the UK on the review. The review is ongoing and is unlikely to conclude before the autumn of this year.

Transport

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive to provide details of all central government expenditure on the City of Edinburgh Rapid Transport scheme to date.

Sarah Boyack: Additional capital allocations totalling £15 million are being made available from the previous Transport Challenge Fund competition to assist the City of Edinburgh Council with their CERT project. To date, additional capital consent of £10.48 million has been advanced to the council for the project.

Transport

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-1388 by Sarah Boyack on 16 March 2000, whether it will request that the Minister for Transport and the Environment be given direct advance notification of any future target practice to be undertaken in Scotland by the Ministry of Defence.

Sarah Boyack: No.

Waste Management

Dr Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many sewerage plants in Scotland currently provide tertiary treatment; where each of these plants are situated; how many tertiary sewerage treatment plants are currently planned, and where each of these plants will be situated.

Sarah Boyack: The information requested is in the tables below:-

  Waste Water Treatment Plants with Tertiary Treatment

  


Authority

  

Works 

  Name/Area

  

Treatment 

  Type

  



East of 

  Scotland WA

  

Blackburn, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Biological 

  Filter

  



"

  

East Calder, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Activated 

  Sludge + Munters Filters

  



"

  

Newbridge, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Activated 

  Sludge

  



"

  

Whitburn 

  (new), Edinburgh & Lothian

  

"

  



"

  

Whitburn 

  (old), Edinburgh & Lothian

  

"

  



"

  

Bathgate, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Biological 

  Filter (new nitrification and sand filter near completion)

  



"

  

Ormiston, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Biological 

  Filter

  



"

  

Livingston, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Biological 

  Filter + Tertiary (Sand) Filters

  



"

  

Leitholm, 

  Borders

  

Biological 

  Filter

  



"

  

Whitsome, 

  Borders

  

Rotating 

  Biological Contactor

  



"

  

Swinton, 

  Borders

  

Ditch

  



"

  

Callander, 

  Forth Valley

  

Biological 

  Filter

  



"

  

Dunblane, 

  Forth Valley

  

Activated 

  Sludge

  



"

  

Kinlochard, 

  Forth Valley

  

Rotating 

  Biological Contactor

  



"

  

Kinross, 

  Fife

  

Activated 

  Sludge

  



"

  

Milnathort, 

  Fife

  

"

  



West of 

  Scotland WA

  

Cleland 

  (Swinstie), Blantyre

  

Phosphorus 

  Removal

  



"

  

Shotts, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Castle Douglas, 

  Blantyre

  

Microstrainer

  



"

  

Greengairs, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Harthill, 

  Blantyre

  

Nitrifying 

  Filters

  



"

  

Kirkton, 

  Dumfries 

  

Standard 

  Percolating Filter

  




Lesmahagow, 

  Blantyre

  

Nitrifying 

  Filters

  



"

  

Netherburn, 

  Blantyre

  

Sand Filter

  



"

  

Daldowie, 

  Glasgow

  

Nitrifying 

  Filter

  



"

  

Gartocharn 

  Paisley

  

Reed Bed

  



"

  

Stronachlacher, 

  Paisley

  

Sand Filter

  



"

  

Kirkoswald, 

  Prestwick

  

Chlorination 

  Disinfection

  



North of 

  Scotland WA

  

Aberdeen 

  LSO, Grampian (South)

  

UV

  



"

  

Aboyne, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Grass Plots

  



"

  

Belhelvie, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Pebble Bed 

  Clarifier

  



"

  

Drumoak, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Sand Filter

  



"

  

Echt, Grampian 

  (South)

  

Pebble Bed 

  Clarifier

  



"

  

Kennethmont, 

  Grampian(South)

  

"

  



"

  

Kintore, 

  Grampian (South)

  

"

  



"

  

Lumsden, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Sand Filter

  



"

  

Meikle Wartle, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Pebble Bed 

  Clarifier

  



"

  

Monymusk, 

  Grampian (South)

  

"

  



"

  

New Byth, 

  Grampian (North)

  

Reed Bed

  



"

  

New Pitsligo, 

  Grampian (North)

  

Microstrainer

  



"

  

Potterton 

  (Gourdieburn), Grampian (South)

  

Pebble Bed 

  Clarifier

  



"

  

Potterton 

  (Denhead), Grampian (South)

  

"

  



"

  

Potterton 

  (Kirkhill), Grampian (South)

  

"

  



"

  

Rothienorman, 

  Grampian (North)

  

Reed Bed

  



"

  

Tarves, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Drum Filter

  



"

  

Udny Station, 

  Grampian (South)

  

Pebble Bed 

  Clarifier

  



  Waste Water Treatment Plants, Proposed by 2000

  


Authority

  

Works Name/Area

  

Treatment 

  Type

  



East of 

  Scotland WA

  

Ceres, Fife

  

Works improved 

  and tertiary filters installed, 2001-02

  



"

  

Haddington, 

  Edinburgh & Lothian

  

Nutrient 

  removal, completed by end 2000

  



West of 

  Scotland WA

  

Burnbrae, 

  Blantyre

  

Reed Bed

  



"

  

Chapelcross, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Dalswinton, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Eaglesfield, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Ecclefechan, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Laurieston, 

  Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Park, Blantyre

  

"

  



"

  

Castle Kennedy, 

  Prestwick

  

"

  



"

  

Sorbie, 

  Prestwick

  

"

  



North of 

  Scotland WA

  

Moray East, 

  Grampian (North)

  

UV

  



"

  

Banff/Macduff, 

  Grampian(North)

  

"

  



"

  

Fraserburgh, 

  Grampian (North)

  

"

Waste Management

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the statement by the Minister for Transport and the Environment to the Transport and the Environment Committee on 19 January 2000, whether it will define the 11 areas for which area waste plans were to be considered; whether any local authorities have been made representations about the designation of areas; whether any changes have been made to the designated areas in the light of any such representations, and if so, whether it will define the amended areas.

Sarah Boyack: The waste strategy areas referred to were defined in the National Waste Strategy: Scotland which the Executive adopted in December 1999. A copy is in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. The areas are set out on page 37 and are outlined in the following table:

  


1

  

Orkney and 

  Shetland

  



2

  

Western 

  Isles

  



3

  

Highland

  



4

  

Moray, City 

  of Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire

  



5

  

City of 

  Dundee, Angus and Perth and Kinross

  



6

  

Stirling, 

  Clackmannanshire and Falkirk

  



7

  

Fife

  



8

  

City of 

  Edinburgh, West Lothian, Midlothian, East Lothian and The Scottish 

  Borders

  



9

  

North Ayrshire, 

  East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway

  



10

  

Inverclyde, 

  Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, City of Glasgow, South Lanarkshire, 

  North Lanarkshire, East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire

  



11

  

Argyll and 

  Bute

  



  These groupings were suggested by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), which concluded that in many cases individual authority areas may not be large enough to generate the economies of scale necessary to provide the infrastructure needed to deal with the more complex waste streams. Authorities were consulted on the groupings for Waste Strategy Areas during the consultation process which preceded the publication of the National Waste Strategy: Scotland and responses to the consultation were carefully considered. It was concluded that Western Isles area should be treated as a separate group.

  SEPA has invited local authorities and other bodies to take part in the first meetings of the groups during April and May. To date, the Executive is aware of only one change to the proposed groupings. Moray will be taking part in the Highland Waste Strategy Area as well as the area proposed in the strategy.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Access

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer why accessible information in all formats is not provided for disabled visitors to the Scottish Parliament.

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer when the Scottish Parliament fact files 1-4 will be available in Braille from the Scottish Parliament Visitor Centre.

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer when the Scottish Parliament fact files 1-4 will be available on audio cassette from the Scottish Parliament Visitor Centre.

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer when the Scottish Parliament fact files 1-4 will be available in large print for partially sighted visitors to the Scottish Parliament.

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer when the information currently available on the interactive computers in the Scottish Parliament Visitor Centre will be adapted for access by non-sighted visitors.

Sir David Steel: The SPCB policy for the start up phase of the Parliament is that official publications will be available in English in hard copy and electronic format as appropriate. This includes the publications, such as the factfiles, produced by the Public Information Service.

  The SPCB is currently working on an Equal Opportunities policy. A small working group of staff and MSPs has been appointed to prepare a draft policy which will cover all aspects including accessibility.

  In addition, a working group of staff has been established to look at purchasing needs and at additional service provision in order to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.

  The SPCB believes that consultation with user groups, e.g. through RNIB and Disability Scotland, is fundamental to developing the required services for disabled people. After this has been undertaken, budgetary and forward planning can be defined in order to address Braille, audio cassette and large print services as well as adapting the multimedia presentations. The restrictions of the current Visitor Centre will determine what the SPCB can achieve with sound-based facilities in the short term.

Access

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has plans to lower the table in the Scottish Parliament Visitor Centre in order that wheelchair bound people can have a clear view of the model of the new Parliament building.

Sir David Steel: The Holyrood model is scheduled to be updated before the end of the summer recess period. The Public Information service will consider the feasibility of adapting the stand during this process.

Access

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has plans to make available, on request, any official parliamentary document in Braille.

Sir David Steel: The SPCB policy for the start up phase of the Parliament is that official publications will be available in English in hard copy and electronic format as appropriate. This includes the publications, such as the factfiles, produced by the Public Information Service.

  The SPCB is currently working on an Equal Opportunities policy. A small working group of staff and MSPs has been appointed to prepare a draft policy which will cover all aspects including accessibility.

  In addition, a working group of staff has been established to look at purchasing needs and at additional service provision in order to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act.

  The SPCB believes that consultation with user groups, e.g. through RNIB and Disability Scotland, is fundamental to developing the required services for disabled people. After this has been undertaken, budgetary and forward planning can be defined in order to address Braille, audiocassette and large print services as well as adapting the multimedia presentations. The restrictions of the current Visitor Centre will determine what the SPCB can achieve with sound-based facilities in the short term.

Access

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has plans to adapt icons and words on the Scottish Parliament website to facilitate easier access for those who are partially sighted.

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body has plans to install the WAV file format or any similar format onto the Scottish Parliament website in order to facilitate an audio reading of each web page.

Sir David Steel: In consultation with user groups, through RNIB and Disability Scotland, the Scottish Parliament is undertaking revisions to its website to facilitate access for the blind and partially sighted. Under development is the provision of text-only version of the site, in which all graphics are replaced by text, and the text itself can be customised by the user in size, colour and contrast, to assist the partially sighted.

  Also under review is the overall design of the site to- better support blind users' screen readers, which reproduce the page content in synthesised speech. Having regard to the advice of the organisations mentioned, this is seen as a more useful and practicable measure than embedding WAV, or other format sound files.

Foreign Trips

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer, further to the answer to question S1W-4379 by Sir David Steel on 29 February 2000, whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will, in future, provide information on costs of individual trips it has funded.

Sir David Steel: The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body is putting in place an administrative process that will identify the costs of individual trips funded by the SPCB of members travelling outwith Scotland/UK.

Foreign Trips

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer, further to the answer to question S1W-4379 by Sir David Steel on 29 February 2000, whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will consider making it a requirement for representatives visiting other countries on its behalf to provide a report on the outcomes for each visit and to place a copy of the report in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

Sir David Steel: The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will determine at the time of considering each request for travel to other countries, whether a report on the outcomes of the visit is necessary.

Foreign Trips

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer, further to the answer to question S1W-4379 by Sir David Steel on 29 February 2000, whether the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will provide details of the criteria used to decide whom it will fund for foreign trips.

Sir David Steel: Under the Members’ Allowances Scheme, any travel outside Scotland is reimbursable only if it has been authorised in advance by the SPCB. There is no specific set of criteria used by the SPCB to decide whom it will fund for foreign trips and every application is considered on an individual basis with reference to the definition of "parliamentary duties" in the Allowances Scheme.

Holyrood Project

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Presiding Officer what are the up-to-date estimates received by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body on the cost of (a) stabilising, (b) upgrading and (c) demolishing Queensberry House.

Sir David Steel: There are no plans to demolish Queensberry House. The latest cost estimate for renovation received by the SPCB and reported in the Spencely report is £10.34 million excluding fees and VAT. However, I am glad to report that the latest cost estimate received since the Spencely report is £7.6 million (excluding fees and VAT) now that more detailed examination is complete.

Holyrood Project

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer what is the total amount of VAT expected to be paid to Her Majesty’s Treasury from the latest estimates of the Holyrood Project and what this sum is as a proportion of the overall cost of the project.

Sir David Steel: Based on the "whole project" estimate of £195 million, the VAT element of 17½% equates to approximately £29 million, of which around £3.5 million is recoverable.

Scottish Parliament Logo

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Presiding Officer whether and when proposals for the Scottish Parliament logo will be available for discussion with all MSPs.

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Presiding Officer what role MSPs will play in the selection of a new Scottish Parliament logo.

Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab): To ask the Presiding Officer what consultations have taken place regarding the new Scottish Parliament logo.

Sir David Steel: As part of its responsibility for corporate matters, the SPCB decided that the text-based corporate identity, which had been commissioned for use at the beginning of the Scottish Parliament in May 1999, should be enhanced by the addition of a badge or logo. After careful consideration and consultation, which included the party business managers, a final design has been agreed and it was announced yesterday. The new badge will appear on Parliament products and materials as soon as existing stocks have been depleted.